Joe Huey did not expect this.
Sections of docks and roofs, timbers and railings in southern Brunswick County were rocked by the waves caused by Hurricane Ian and the wind-swept shoreline of the Soundfront.
“This is the worst thing I’ve ever seen,” Huie said. The field of debris scattered along the sound bank and back into the wetlands from Brick Landing on Ocean Isle Beach to Sunset Beach was “frankly amazing for a storm this weak”.
Four days after a Category 1 hurricane made landfall near Georgetown, South Carolina, Huey and a small crew of fishermen headed south from their base in Sneeze’s Ferry, a small town about 80 miles from Ocean Isle Beach. rice field.
Within three days, the crew had filled a 40-yard trash can with everything they had picked up so far.
Much of what is being removed requires North Carolina to reinstate its residential dock and pier building codes, requiring property owners to vette the contractors building these waterfront structures. I claim there is.
“Hurricane Ian is a good example of how persistent this kind of debris—the docks and piers in coastal wetlands—is persistent,” said Coastal Advocate, manager of the Southeast Regional Office of the North Carolina Coastal Union. Kelly Allen says. “While this is a storm that has had minimal impact on the North Carolina coast, it has resulted in an enormous amount of debris associated with docks and piers.”
Huie crews have been clearing debris from coastal marshes south of Swansboro into Brunswick County for the past three and a half years.
On cleanup days, crews collect approximately one tonne of material per day. Their work is part of a larger effort by various agencies and groups, including the Coastal Federation, to clog up coastal wetlands and remove marine debris that collects on Spoil Island. The Coastal Federation publishes the Coastal Review.
These areas are barely visible to sound-skimming boaters.
Huie said he had never seen one litter just beyond the shoreline of the New River until he was hired by the Coastal Federation to walk the swamps and clear the debris.
“The debris we’re talking about is in the swamp and it’s all over the swamp,” he said. “You have to go out and walk to see it.
In the days after Hurricane Ian, he found an intact porch structure in the wetlands near Sunset Beach.
“It’s very nice. The tag was still on the deck board that was built some time ago,” says Huie.
Such finds are not uncommon, and debris removal workers have learned over the years through extensive debris removal programs.
“It was really amazing to us, how many new structures were introduced that were not up to par,” Allen said. “Unfortunately, there are many contractors who deliberately build substandard structures in order to achieve a price or sometimes to keep their business. It’s very important to find contractors who are worth their salt, who have long-lasting construction.”
In 2020, the Coastal Federation partnered with government agencies, community groups, and academics to create North Carolina’s Marine Litter Action Plan. It focuses on cleaning up trash and stopping it at its source.
One of the recommendations from that plan is to promote stronger state building codes by reinstating regulations on residential docks and piers.
“With all the recognition we have gained through our Marine Debris Removal Program, we hope to use it to lobby the North Carolina Building Code Council to restore the docks and piers and hopefully strengthen their language,” Allen said. I got
The Council is a 17-member Governor-appointed committee that adopts and amends the state’s building codes.
Several local governments have amended town ordinances to reduce marine litter by banning the use of encapsulated Styrofoam in the construction and repair of floating docks.
Wrightsville Beach became the fourth town to ban the material earlier this month. Bans have been added in all three of his towns on Topsail Island for the summer.
The Coastal Union’s efforts to educate these seaside towns about how much polystyrene litter is being found in coastal wetlands have also made property owners aware of the problem, Allen said.
The nonprofit has applied for additional funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Debris Program to launch a full-scale education and outreach campaign on the issue.
“I think the biggest takeaway for coastal property owners is to choose their contractors really wisely,” Allen said. “A dock we build in Wrightsville Beach is very different than a dock we build in Emerald Isle because of the wave energy and location and environment. Invest a little more research, and maybe even pay up front, and you’ll have a structure that will last for years and won’t end up in the wreckage of the ocean coast.”
Allen said the federal government is developing a cost-benefit analysis that will show the cost of a property owner building a dock or pier designed to last for years in multiple storms, versus the cost of building a dock or pier that could be damaged or destroyed in one go. Arashi has become able to understand the difference in cost.
“In general, individual components are about 30% to 100% more expensive than what we’ve seen,” she said.
The staff is also looking at insurance incentives where insurers would reward customers for building better structures by lowering their premiums.
In the meantime, the Coastal Union will have a brochure on its website explaining how to find a reputable contractor and what to consider when deciding on the best type of structure for the area where it will be built. We provide tips for property owners about
“It’s really about making sure you both understand what the specific terms are on the dock site, and making sure you’re building a structure that fails once you both agree,” he said. Allen said.
Huie said he was concerned about marine debris from storms bigger and more powerful than Hurricane Ian.
“I’m really worried about what happens when we get to Category 2 or Category 3,” he said. “It will take years to clean up. Debris alone can permanently alter some habitats.”
